Honorable Intentions
by Infatuated-Simplicity
Summary: Something strange was going on here, very strange, and Kakashi was quite not sure how to react. Good things rarely came from boys taking an interest in his Sakura-chan, no matter how honorable the intentions. Of course, that could all change if she actually liked the Hyuuga... But then what were the chances of that? NXS
1. Chapter 1

Authors Note: I realize that not everyone likes a strong Sakura and I have been told in previous stories that ANBU doesn't suit her. I disagree. I think she would be a very good ANBU medic and I have made her one in this story though it is safe to assume that she is not on an ANBU mission here. We've diverted from the timeline and they are somewhere in their twenties. I hope you all enjoy. I think that this will be a 3 chapter story, maybe 4. We will have to see.

* * *

Kakashi looked down on the campsite and made a move to take out his guilty pleasure, as was his custom. Something caught his eye, something slightly odd. His Sakura-chan, after setting up her tent, had rested herself by leaning against a large tree trunk and the Hyuuga had taken it upon himself to rest against the open space next to her.

His brow furrowed as he thought back to the start of the mission. He had noticed the slightly odd behavior earlier but hadn't thought much of it. The Hyuuga boy had made it a point to travel directly behind Sakura the whole way here. At the gate he'd noticed those white eyes watching his former student but hadn't dwelled on it. Watching wasn't a crime… but this wasn't watching. Not any more.

The boy was so close that their arms were touching and their feet were barely an inch apart. For anyone else this might not have seemed like much but Hyuuga Neji was never seen that close to anyone, particularly not of his own volition. Then Sakura leaned up and said something that actually made the prodigy chuckle to himself before she pushed off of the tree and began to make her way to Naruto.

He watched the opal eyes that followed her every step carefully. There was something in those eyes that made him uneasy and he wasn't sure what it was yet, but he could tell it wasn't , at least he did not consider it to be good. Nor was it entirely bad. It wasn't pure lust like many other boys eyes that followed his student. They held something else, something potentially detrimental. He felt a surge of fatherly instincts well up in his chest. He wanted to shake his head at his over protectiveness. Sure, the boy's behavior was odd, but maybe he was making more of it than there was.

It was true that to him Sakura would, in a sense, always be that little girl that he'd met all those years ago and he still felt the need to protect her. Even he had to admit that she didn't really need it anymore and he was getting too old to run off every suitor that took an interest. And there had been many, not that she gave any of them the time of day, always too focused on work to care about romance.

His mind reeled back a second, his own thoughts echoing in his head. If he had ever laughed in public before, he would have in that moment. Too old indeed. What would these kids do without him? Come to that, what would he have done without them? He couldn't help but roll his eyes at his own sentimentality.

He looked down from his perch on a sturdy tree branch at his former students. Naruto was struggling with the tent that Sakura had forced him to buy. True to form the gaudy contraption was orange, despite all of Sakura's best efforts, and the jinchuriki was currently tangled in a mess of supports and material, shouting all sorts of unintelligible obscenities. Sasuke was sitting in front of a finished black tent, looking quite pleased to have finished before Naruto, an elbow resting on a raised bent knee. The whole scene was very reminiscent of their early years together, and for a second it seemed like the years in-between hadn't happened. But their age gave them away and the spiraling scar in the center of Sasuke's chest was proof enough of exactly what had transpired. The Uchiha's pride was quickly erased as the current bane of his existence crossed his path in an attempt to assist Naruto.

Kakashi stopped the deep, round chuckle that threatened to escape him. Oh, did the hokage have a cruel sense of humor! When Sasuke was dragged home by Naruto, beaten and bleeding out from a gapping hole in his chest, it had taken all three of Konoha's prized kunoichi medics to patch it up fully. The scarred man had then been put on trial and was found guilty of treason. After imprisonment for two years, he had been let out under the express conditions that he would swear undying fealty to Konoha, obey every command given by the hokage, and be under constant surveillance by ANBU members. He had one, Tenzo, watching his every move day in and day out in the village. There was a second ANBU member that watched him on missions with the help of one particular ex-ANBU member (himself, of course) and the unofficially assistance of everyone's favorite knucklehead. The look on Sasuke's face when he realized exactly whom his ANBU captor was had been priceless.

It was none other than their own dear sweet Sakura-chan. Kakashi had been the one to train her for ANBU, Tsunade having never been one during her time as an active kunoichi, and it was something he bragged about when given the chance.

She was an exceptional kunoichi and ANBU medic. Not training Sakura as much when she was younger was a point that he had always regretted. Early on he'd put the most effort into Sasuke, training the boy to use his signature jutsu, which in retrospect had probably been a mistake. It was true that Sasuke had been the only one to fit the jutsu at the time, and a fact that he'd needed it penetrate Gaara's sand. He still wished he'd been able to find another way. But there was no going back now. He'd left each of his students with a gift from their training with him and that was Sasuke's.

Now the man was on a regular team, with his old sensei, rival, and his ex-fan girl keeping him in line. And Sakura took the job very seriously. Either her eyes or Kakashi's had to be on Sasuke at all times, no if ands or buts about it. She trusted Naruto too, but they all knew that Naruto had a tendency to get distracted, so he left it up to them to watch Sasuke, and they left it to him should the nin need to be dragged back by force. If Sasuke had been expecting Sakura to be a lax warden he was severely mistaken, something she had proved more than once over their last six months together as a reformed team, much to Sasuke's chagrin.

When Sakura reached Naruto, the blonde waved her away hastily, determined to do this on his own. On the other side of the camp a boisterous laugh caught everyone's attention.

"You're team has grown soft, Kakashi! My team has no need for tents on this fine day." Maito Gai was currently doing some sort of odd competition with Lee to see who was the most flexible. Needless to say Kakashi quickly returned to his book. He certainly didn't need to see them doing that in spandex.

From behind the worn paper back covers of his book he replied, "Doctors orders."

Two shinny bowl haircuts turned towards the woman implicated. They watched curiously as she lifted her head into the air and sniffed before she walked over to Naruto and quickly untangled him. "It's going to rain," she said while putting the main support through the material on Naruto's tent, laying it next to her own green and brown shelter, allowing him to finish the rest.

"I wonder how she does that," Tenten said, referring to the weather prediction, reaching into her pack and pulling out her shelter for the night.

Kakashi tuned out the cries of betrayal coming from Gai at Tenten's "lack of youthfulness" and Lee's promises to endure the rain all night if he had to.

Then something caught his eye from down below. _What was that?_

Hyuuga Neji had remained practically silent the entire trip, only speaking when spoken to and even then responding only with his usual 'hn'. But there he was having a small conversation with Sakura, for the entire world appearing as though he was thoroughly enjoying the monopoly he had on her attention. In fact, he had started this little interaction.

Kakashi peaked over the top of his book to get a better view with out being noticed. Upon closer inspection the Hyuuga male was doing more than a first glance would have gleaned. He was leaning subtly towards Sakura. Every time Sakura would check to see how Naruto was fairing with the rest of the tent he easily managed to draw her gaze back to his. Then as if to cement the draw he had on her attention the boy leaned even closer and whispered something to her, the shell of her ear dangerously close to his lips. A gust of wind blew into the clearing and her hair fanned out brushing over the Hyuugas cheeks. He didn't pull away, opting to smile at her instead as her hair settled down around her shoulders.

And that's when Kakashi saw something he really wasn't expecting. A light dusting of pink had stained the woman's cheeks. It was barely there but for anyone who knew Sakura, it spoke volumes. She was clearly slightly uncomfortable, but if he was any judge it wasn't the bad kind of uncomfortable. She appeared to be enjoying the Hyuuga's attention.

_How very intriguing._

The two under his scrutiny quietly spoke for a moment before the young man gathered twigs from the surrounding foliage. Taking out a kunai he cut the twigs quickly and handed them to the medic. Sakura divided the twigs, four in each hand, while calling the rest of the group, regaining her usual demeanor of professionalism.

"Four tents with eight people and the last thing we need is for someone to get sick and need me to heal them. We're drawing straws for tent partners. Tent owners take a stick from my left hand, everyone else takes one from my right. You bunk with the matching stick." Lee's eyes twinkled at the thought of getting to share a tent with Sakura. Tenten sighed wearily knowing that this was not going to go well with both Lee and Gai lacking a tent.

The three tent owners pulled sticks from her left hand, Sakura being left with the last one. They held up their choices and Kakashi noted how intently the Hyuuga looked at the remaining stick in her hand. With a gesture she signaled for the others to choose. Neji was the first landing a hand on his chosen twig before even Lee could reach her. The last twig was left, clearly intended for Kakashi, and the choices had been made. Kakashi noted the smug look on the Hyuuga's face before it dissipated leaving his usual stoicism.

That was interesting, and Kakashi raised an eyebrow that went unnoticed by the others on the ground. Now he was sure about what was going on.

"Gai-sensei and Tenten in tent 1, Kakashi-sensei and Sasuke in tent 2, Naruto and Lee-san in tent 3, Neji-san and I in tent 4." Oh, Kakashi didn't like this at all, not one bit. If the look he'd seen earlier was anything to go by this little arrangement was hardly accidental, and the Hyuuga was behind it all. Sakura probably had no idea he'd intentionally picked the same lot as her. Kakashi's eye narrowed as he watched the young man in question grab his bag and quietly place it in the opening of Sakura's tent. He would definitely be keeping an eye on that one. If only Tenten had forgotten her damned tent then the girls would have automatically bunked together…

But enough about that. The thought of the tents reminded him of the other problem. There was another young woman in the camp in far more disconcerting straights than Konoha's resident cherry blossom. For now he decided to focus his concerned on Tenten. The poor girl looked like she was about to die. The day's travel had worn her out, and Gai was not the calmest sleeper known to mankind; he was almost as bad as Naruto.

His voice floated down from the tree to the group below. "Gai and I will take the first watch. Sakura I'll leave you in charge of the fire. Naruto and Lee can go fill the canteens. Everyone else can rest. We will cross paths with the rouge Iwa-nins tomorrow and commandeer the scroll." With a nod from each individual and a thankful glance from Tenten, who then quickly disappeared into her tent, they all set off on their appointed tasks.

Sasuke, for his part, looked particularly annoyed and bored at not being given an assignment. He stood to wander off into the woods and made it about five steps before his path was blocked. The steely gaze that met him stopped him dead in his tracks and he couldn't help but glare in response. His glare had no effect and Sakura took a few purposeful steps towards the Uchiha with her hand stretched out in front of her. He instinctively took a step back to distance himself from those potentially deadly fists, whose power he had experienced first hand on a number of occasions. A snicker from the other side of the campsite made him realize what he had just done and embarrassment washed over his features for the briefest of seconds.

His embarrassment was short lived and quickly turned into contempt when he noticed the nonchalant look Sakura sported. "Stay where Kaka-sensei can see you," she said as she held his gaze for a moment longer, letting him know she meant business before she turned away. He slunk away to tend to his diminished ego. The haughty Hyuuga smirk sent Sasuke's way didn't do anything to ease the Uchiha's wounded pride and Kakashi was surprised to find nothing but admiration for the petite kunoichi in the pearl eyes that accompanied the smirk. Naruto's cackle turned his attention to the two energetic men heading to get water from the river a few hundred meters away, passing a sulking Sasuke as they left.

A voice traveled to his ears from down below, cutting through the cackling that was slowly drifting away. "I'll go get some fire wood and then make some tea." Sakura was addressing him, letting him know where'd she be; a habit from her younger days she hadn't managed to shake. He liked it that way. After all, he'd been the one to insist on it when she was still a genin. He nodded at her from his spot in the tree.

"I'll help." The deep baritone indicated exactly who had offered Sakura his assistance. Kakashi resisted the urge to spy on them. '_For kami's sake'_, he berated himself, _'Sakura is a grown woman, not some love struck twelve year old. She can make her own decisions_'.

Kakashi noted that the soft smile adorning Sakura's features was directed solely at the young coffee haired man. He decided that he had been right to chastise himself. It was entirely possible that the boy meant no harm and Sakura seemed to like him, possibly a great deal. Well, the term 'boy' was hardly applicable to the person in question, but calling him one made Kakashi feel better for some reason. Besides, all in all Hyuuga Neji was a good choice, if he thought about it. He had a lot to offer a woman of his student's caliber and he was one of the finest shinobi in the village.

But was that enough? And there were other more important factors to consider. The question was, what did this Hyuuga have in mind for his Sakura-chan?

Only time and a great deal of observation would tell. Even if his intentions weren't honorable, Sakura was more than capable of punting him all the way to Suna before any serious damage was done. Kakashi resisted the urge to shrug. For now he'd just watch.

The minutes passed and soon enough the two returned, Sakura very quietly but animatedly chatting while Neji listened attentively. He also noted that Neji had been the one to carry all the heavy branches leaving Sakura with the tinder. He had to give the boy points for being gentlemanly even thought they were all aware that Sakura could out do any of them as far as brute strength was concerned.

The Copy nin settled into a position where he could comfortably hear and see the events occurring down below him. The two nins settled down together on the ground near the center of the ring of tents. They placed the wood on the ground revealing that they were both also carrying river rocks. They set the rocks in a circle and piled a few pieces of wood on top to make a small unnoticeable fire.

As they waited for Naruto and Lee to return, Sakura pulled a storage scroll and some tea leaves from her pouch. Sakura was never one to just leave well enough alone and a badgered Tenten until the weapons expert had given up the secrets of her infinite storage. Sakuras was the size of a normal scroll but Kakashi was still amazed by how much she had managed to keep there.

"I didn't know you carried that." Neji watched her open the container with the leaves, obviously wondering what she else she kept stored away.

She made a small teapot and a couple of cups appear from her scroll before opening her pouch to show him rows of small containers with leaves and foliage inside, snugly attached to the inside wall. Each clear container was labeled and stored in perfect alphabetical order. "Tea can have medicinal properties. Often times I need to brew a medication before a patient ingests it. This is what I use in the field," she said holding up a cup and placing some leaves in it.

"Could this one be used as medicine?" he asked, leaning closer to her to get a better look at the leaves she was using.

"Not really. I like tea before bed if the mission allows it," she admitted with a guilty smile before placing the cup on the forest floor.

She expected him to say something along the lines of 'what a waste of time' or 'that's unprofessional', but he didn't. Instead he lit the tinder with a match from his pouch and confessed, "So do I."

She looked up at him, admittedly a little surprised. They both turned to the noise coming from the forest only to identify the chakra signatures as their rambunctious teammates coming back with the water.

She turned back to Neji and grinned, putting some leaves in the other cup. "Then I'll make you a cup too," she said, reaching out to Naruto for the water as he passed behind her. With the water in the pot they all sat in silence as it boiled.

before too long the impatient Naruto began to fidget waiting for the announcement of dinner. Sooner rather than later he gave up and the all too familiar whine drifted through the tree tops.

"Sakura-chan, what's for dinner?" the blonde man whined after a bit, when he noticed that there was no pot of food or meat cooking over the flame.

She touched another circle on her scroll and food for the teams appeared. "Cup ramen for you and dried food packs for us. I'll heat you some water in a minute." She sniffed the air again, making sure to turn her head away from the small tendrils of smoke rising into the air. "It'll start raining soon. Kaka-sensei?" She called up to him for orders.

He could smell the rain too and it was approaching fast. He looked down at Naruto jumping around on the ground below. "We have enough time to boil the water but the storm is coming fast." Sakura nodded in consent and poured the hot water into the small cups. She refilled the small pot and set about her next task. "Everyone grab your food packs and head for the tents." His orders were obeyed and he watched as Neji took two dinner packs and the two teacups and settled inside Sakura's tent. Just before the storm rolled in Sakura handed Naruto his dinner. She quickly removed their equipment and headed for shelter.

As Kakashi headed for the opening of Sasuke's tent, which had a little awning at the front, and prepared to settle down for the evening sitting on the cold damp ground with Gai, he saw a glow coming from Sakura's tent. The outline of the individuals inside was faint but he could still see them.

They were sitting close but not too close, drinking tea and having a quiet conversation. He was beginning to wonder if he'd ever seen the Hyuuga talk with one person for that long before. When they had finished their tea they set about squishing the second sleeping bag inside Sakura's one-man tent.

And then the downpour began. Kakashi sighed as his self-proclaimed eternal rival began doing sit-ups next to him. The dim glow faded in teh tent and Kakashi buried his nose in his book, keeping one eye trained on Sasuke.

* * *

The next morning had been fairly uneventful. Tenten had taken over the watch shift with Lee next to her, after he'd been punched one too many times by a passed out Naruto. The rain wasn't over. The black clouds were still hanging around, ready to pour down again, moving along the direction of the river.

When he emerged from the tent at the crack of dawn Sakura and Neji were already eating. Sakura had this rule about eating as much as they could when they could. If they should ever be caught in a situation where they couldn't stop to eat they would have some energy left over from the last time they'd eaten. She hated solider pills, saying that prolonged use had an adverse effect on the body, and avoided using them as much as possible.

She tossed him a pack of dried fruit and meat, which he caught and opened. When the others eventually emerged they too received their food and ate quickly. All were aware that today was the critical day for the mission.

Sakura glanced over at Kakashi, remembering that he'd been on watch duty the night before, and gave him a questioning look. He knew what she was asking and silently answered her with an affirmative nod. He bit his thumb and placed his hand on the ground. The cloud of smoke dissipated and the ninja-hounds appeared.

"Yo Sakura-chan, Kakashi." Sakura kneeled down in response, to allow the ninken to surround her, giving her a proper doggy welcome. She returned each lick on her hand with a quick scratch behind the ear. A few seconds later, when the dogs sat at attention, she stood up with her hands on her hips and looked to Kakashi.

Kakashi stood up and began the briefing. "We need you guys to spread out, heading away from Konoha. We've received intel that some rouge Kiri-nins have a rare scroll. Find them and report back as soon as possible. We want to intercept them." When the dogs had received their orders they quickly got into formation.

The deep voice of the small dog rumbled out as he turned away to give the signal to his pack. "Right. Go," he said, before taking off, each dog bolting in a different direction.

Kakashi looked around and noted that Naruto was still half asleep. "Naruto," he called out in his tone of correction. "Finish eating and wake up. The pack will be back soon." The blonde shook himself awake and blearily downed his food. Sakura helped him take apart his tent, which was the last one still out, before getting him to store it in his seldom-used storing scroll.

Sakura silently gestured for Sasuke to hold out his hand and reluctantly the nin did so with a tired expression. She grabbed his wrist and pushed chakra into his system. A green mark slowly began to concentrate on his forearm. Sakura pulled away, completely expressionless and Sasuke frowned at the mark before pulling his sleeve down to cover it.

When the area was clear the group waited for Pakkun to return, but surprisingly it wasn't the small dog that returned first. The large black bulldog, Bull, was the first to re-enter camp, looking quite pleased with himself. " The others will be here shortly." His words were backed up by the other seven ninken arriving behind him.

"Point of interception?" Sakura asked looking around the group of dogs.

Pakkun was the one to speak up. "25 degrees to the north-east, about 15 miles ahead at the cliff. My opinion is that they'll be there in the next hour or so. there might be others in the area but hthe scent is weak." Sakura smiled at his information. "Do you need anything else?" The dogs looked up at Sakura and Kakashi waiting for orders.

She looked at Kakashi in confirmation before saying, "No, I think that's it for now. We'll call you when we get home so I can get you some treats." Sakura stepped back as they disappeared. Kakashi chuckled, putting his book away.

"You spoil them." Sakura grinned at his statement before moving to stand behind Sasuke to keep an eye on him. "Let's move now and lay a few traps for them," Kakashi said, taking off into the forest with the group at his heels.

* * *

They waited in silence as their prey got closer. This was the one time those green jumpsuits were useful. _Now if only they would get rid of the orange leg warmers… what was it with hyperactive people and the color orange anyway?_ It was something he'd never understand.

Every member sunk further into the trees as the sound of nins jumping on branches got closer. They weren't trying to conceal their movements and it made Kakashi wonder why. They were in enemy territory. They should be more careful.

One of the trip wires was triggered and an explosion went off taking out one of the rouge nins. Naruto and Tenten charged forward engaging the first few enemy nins. The next group of rouges filtered onto the tree covered cliff bringing Neji and Sasuke into action. Lee was monitoring the enemy fighters to determine who had the scroll and was on orders to dart into the battle and retrieve that scroll as quickly as possible.

That's when the Kumo-nins entered the canopy from across the gorge. Kakashi and Gai were forced into action attempting to give Lee more time. Sakura charged forward and sent one of them flying backwards in to the forest with a broken face. She noticed a rouge-nin guarding the left side of his chest and signaled to Lee that their target had been found. Sakura assisted Tenten with one of her enemies and Lee darted into the fray. He quickly immobilized the man with the scroll but he'd been spotted with the scroll in his hands. When he jumped in to the trees to re-conceal himself he was intercepted buy a trio of Kumo-nins.

He was being pushed back to the edge of a large branch over looking the river below.

"You help him. I'll hold these two off!" Tenten shouted to Sakura and Sakura didn't hesitate. Lee was already resorting to drastic measures but fighting three high ranking Kumo-nins with one hand was no laughing matter and they had him trapped with the scroll.

Kakashi saw Lee get pushed back, landing on his back against the thick branch. The scroll fell out of his hands as his knuckles hit the bark. Kakashi was ready to dart forward and catch the scroll but the nin he was fighting had disappeared under ground and was now holding onto his ankles.

A slight panic raced through him as he saw Sakura and an enemy nin race of the edge of the cliff towards the rapidly falling scroll. Something blew past him and it was all Kakashi could do to trust in Sakura and focus on eliminating any other nins that had a mind to take the plunge after her.

Sakura streamlined her body and stretched her hands over the top of her head. She heard something jingle behind her and she knew another nin was within striking distance. She kicked a foot out and felt it connect with something. A low growl informed her that she had hit her target but with no snapping bones or cries of agony it wasn't likely that she hit him at full force.

She narrowed her eyes. There was some distance between her and the water but she was getting closer to the turbulent waves with every passing second. She needed to grab the scroll and get into something watertight before they hit the river. The scroll was grazing her fingertips so she pushed harder and grabbed it and flattened her body to slow the fall even if it was just by a millisecond. She heard a yell of pain from the enemy nin and took advantage of the extra time tucking the forbidden scroll tightly under her arm. She pulled the storage scroll out of her pouch and made the hand symbols letting her storage scroll fly into the air behind her. A plastic container flew out and she grabbed it, and unscrewed the top. She stuffed the forbidden scroll in and screwed the top back on just in time to feel something wrap around her waist tightly and swing her so she was facing the sky. She clamped the container to her chest and took a deep breath before the river engulfed her and whoever was holding onto her.

She turned her head, ready for the possible enemy attached to her to attack, but relaxed when pearl eyes starred back at her. Sakura was confused. Why weren't they trying to get to the surface? They were both slammed into a rock and she was forced to concentrate on keeping a hold of the scroll, letting Neji and his byakugan worry about navigating the river.

He looked around; the river was deep but narrow and a strong current kept dragging them under. The banks were steep with no shore line, a lesson he had just learned by trying to get them to shore only to be slammed into a piece of the canyon wall that jutted out. The water was more turbulent at the sides and it was hard to get to the surface as a result. His byakugan allowed him to clearly see the rock they were rapidly approaching and he positioned them feet forward. Sakura must have realized his plan because when their feet hit the rock they both pushed off and up, carrying them to the surface at the center of the river. When they broke the surface they each took a deep breath before the current pulled them under again. Neji went about scanning the river for a safe bank and Sakura would periodically spring board them off of the canyon wall to the surface.

It was miles later that the canyon retreated away from the river slightly and the water began to slow. It had felt like they'd been in the water for ages, which might have been the case. The canyon was getting wider and soon they would have a chance to get out. Neji saw a small bank up ahead and directed them towards it.

His feet were first to connect with the muddy bank but Sakura soon got her footing and for the first time since they'd been plunged into the cold water she let her arms relax. She took a quick survey of the small alcove. There were a few branches from the trees above scattered about and the rock face pushed in to create a shallow shelter a few feet back from the rivers edge. A loud crack of lightning webbed its way across the sky. They looked at each other and began getting ready.

Sakura picked up tinder and twigs, as many as she could pull from the canyon wall and brush on the shore, while Neji checked the small dwelling for animals. She pretended not to notice as he tossed a water snake into the river. The space was shallow but wide and there was just enough room for two people to lay back to front on their sides, or sit next to each other, with a very small fire going. She looked over her shoulder and found him erasing any traces of their presence as he walked backwards towards the cave opening, brushing away his footprints as he went.

When Sakura sat on the ground she pulled out her pouch and started to shuffle things around. How on earth was she going to fit the damned scroll in her pouch when it was already full? She wanted to let out a grunt of frustration. Some of those herbs were expensive and hard to find, and she was going to have to by all new equipment. She'd probably have to do another mission directly after this one to make up for the loss…

White parchment crossed her vision and her eyes focused on her storage scroll in Neji's hand.

"I thought you might want this," he said with a small smirk, sitting down next to her when she took it from him. She looked at his now seated figure in grateful admiration.

"When did you have the time?" she asked, assessing the condition of the scroll. She had a great many things tucked away in these symbols.

"While you were busy putting that away," he gestured to the forbidden scroll inside the plastic container. "I stored it." Sakura looked at the man in front of her and smiled. He must have stuffed it in his pouch or within the folds of that white shirt he was wearing. It was still somewhat unraveled from her frantic actions earlier. Though her scroll was undeniably as soggy as they were, she had used permanent ink to create it and so everything was still mostly intact.

She unraveled it further and removed her travel blanket. Neji set about lighting the fire with two of the twigs and the tinder. He broke up the branch he used to cover their tracks and set it to dry next to the flames. They couldn't stay cold and wet much longer, so Sakura scooted as close to the small flickers of orange as she could get, fanning the flames. Soon enough the shelter was warming up and Sakura could feel her toes again.

The rain pelted down outside causing the water soaked mud to splash up, each ripple clashing with another. It didn't seem like it was going to stop anytime soon. She wrapped the blanket snuggly around her body and removed her regulation ANBU top and black medic skirt, laying the wet articles on the rock surface near the fire. She turned and found Neji looking at her curiously.

"We might be here for a while," she said with a small smile. He nodded silently and to her surprise removed his outer layers and placed them next to her own. The wind blew into the sanctuary and Sakura watched as the muscles on his back were suddenly prickled with goose bumps. She silently held her arm out, inviting him into her personal space. He waited a moment, making sure she was comfortable with the situation and in that time realized why she didn't seem that bothered. The straps of a black sports top were visible now and her black shorts still clung to her rounded hips and covered the upper half of her creamy thighs. He slid over the few inches that were between them and rested his now blanketed back against the rock face.

His arms were warm to the touch and Sakura barely noticed that she was leaning into him. He let a small smile grace his features as she went about retrieving dried food packs from her never ending scroll. He had never seen someone so prepared. She leaned forward and he could see exactly how much she hid under her constricting bindings. In more ways than one he found her to be like an iceberg, far deeper under the surface than a first glance might gleam. She had always been smarter than she let on initially and her knowledge was incredibly vast. Even in her abilities she was far more than let on. Delicate in appearance, her punches could level mountains. And her beauty was more than skin deep, a kindness and strength in her that glow from within and lit up a room. It was what brought him to her in the first place; her sincerity, honesty, and pureness of spirit that he rarely saw in other.

A soft humming echoed in their dwelling and Neji closed his eyes to enjoy the gentle melody. He opened them again a few minutes later when the humming got softer and locked eyes with the woman next to him. A barely noticeable blush crept onto her cheeks before she looked back to the tea she had begun to prepare for them. His smile was back tenfold though she didn't see it. He leaned forwards so their arms were brushing again and adjusted the blanket more snugly around her. The dripping pink tendrils covered her face but he was sure she was smiling too.

Another gust of wind blew in and she leaned further into his warmth. When her knee pushed against his while she was reaching forward she pulled away, as if afraid she'd offended him by being too close. The shy look he received was enough to tell him what she was thinking. Without hesitation he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her back to where she had been before closing his eyes again in relaxation. It took a few minutes but eventually she returned to the tea and soon enough she handed him a mug of steaming liquid.

When his lips touched the rim of the mug he let out a grunt of approval and took a long sip. He was positive that Sakura was comfortable again and braved looking at her only to find her watching him as she blew on her tea. This time the blush was definitely there and he smiled back, letting her see what few had seen before. He leaned against the cavern wall, bringing her with him, and settled down to wait out the storm.

* * *

End comments: By now my fans know that I am terrible when it comes to predicting when a new chapter will be out so I'm not even going to try. What I will say is that I know where this story is going and I've already started the next chapter. I thought a new point of view would be nice so I decided to try my hand at Kakashi. I don't think he was too OOC... anyway I hope you enjoyed. Till next time!


	2. Chapter 2

Authors note: the second installment is up sooner than i thought. there will be a third chapter i think and hopefully it will be out relatively soon. i have two more fics to upload in the near future, both oneshots (or of a similar length), so we will see what happens. onto the story...

* * *

Kakashi came to a stop, bringing a halt to his team. One by one they had eliminated the threat of the Kumo nins. During that time they had been on the look out for Sakura and Neji but if he knew those two they had done the smart thing and found a safe place to wait out the threats of the storm and the impending night, leaving the enemy nins to their trustworthy teammates. By the time the enemy had been taken care of the rain had washed away any scent that may have been lingering in the air. Having said that, it should not have been too hard to find them. The river was obviously where their path started but they could have gotten out anywhere. He knew his student and Sakura would stay safe until morning where she would then most likely find him whilst heading towards Konoha. After all, barring some catastrophe, she had the scroll and that was their mission.

He signaled for his team to start setting up camp. As each member set up for the night there was a distinctly antsy vibe about. With Sakura and Neji missing a very nervous Naruto and Lee were nothing less than fidgety. It was clear as day that all they wanted to do was go out searching for their lost teammates. Gai was hardly any better but they all knew it would be useless in the downpour that was currently drenching them. The wind was picking up quickly and as if everyone knew what that meant they continued setting up more quickly.

Soon enough they had all retreated to their tents to weather out the storm with a determined Lee standing watch. Kakashi took a look at a bored Sasuke, who had not left his sight since Sakura dove off the cliff face. It was going to be a long silent night. They would have to wait until morning to find Sakura and Neji. In the mean time he had to have faith in their skills as shinobi. After all he was almost 100% sure that they were together. Neji dove in after her without hesitation. He was sure the Hyuuga prodigy would keep her safe. though having said that, he was not sure how comfortable he was with that.

* * *

Sakura looked out the small entrance to the cave and noticed that beyond the sheet of water falling before her, the already dark sky was darkening further. Night would soon be on them and the rain showed no sings of letting up. Their small fire was still going and their clothes were still a little soggy but at least they were not cold. At least she was not.

The heat radiating off of Neji was incredible. He was not ill, she had been sure to surreptitiously check, but his warm skin against her colder flesh felt scorching. The spot where her bare shoulder was touching his arm was blazing but not uncomfortable, as odd as that sounded. Actually it seemed unfair that he was keeping her warm and she felt like her body heat was barely registering. Of course she knew that was not entirely true, but that was what it felt like. She had been a bit concerned when his chakra and heartbeat spiked earlier but it seemed there had been nothing to worry about. Sitting so close, she could tell he was fine.

At the moment she was more concerned about herself. She had noticed before, how could she not, but in such close proximity to him she was becoming nervous and ever so slightly giddy. The set of emotions reminded her distinctly of younger years when she had been more impressionable and less sensible. And while she was enjoying the feeling, now was hardly the time. The longer they sat there the more aware she was becoming of this emotional storm brewing in her chest and she was distinctly aware of every move he made.

She was not blind. She had seen his odd behavior. At first she had not thought much of it, but now she was beginning to suspect. In fact she had suspected from the start of the mission. And how flattering it was. One of the most eligible men in Konoha, and possibly the most handsome depending on who you asked, was going well out of his way to be with her. And not a moment too soon.

How could he have known? Maybe he did not, in which case she was even more flattered. It would explain his slow but purposeful inching in her direction since they had began. And his inching had been successful if that was what he was aiming for. They were half naked and confined in a small space. Normally this might have bothered her, and to an extent it did, but not in the way others may have guessed. His eyes on her figure brought a heat to her system that she could not quite describe and the deep rumble in his voice eased her troubles. She felt secure and slightly insecure all at the same time and more than that she was filed with anticipation; hence the nervous response that she could not eradicate.

She took a deep breath and looked at their surroundings. The cave was small, even smaller now that they were in it. As she had suspected when they trudged up the river bank they could both lay flat back to front but it would be a tight fit. A few solutions presented themselves, but would he be comfortable with them? One thing she had noticed about Hyuuga Neji was his tenancy to stick to his traditional upbringing. They would have to get sleep at some point. She was wary of broaching the subject but she decided to anyway.

"We have a small problem," she said, looking at the coffee haired man.

He turned his head to her and gave a warm grunt. "Hn?"

"We might be able to fit one sleeping bag in here but certainly not two," she said looking into his eyes making sure he understood why she seemed slightly nervous. Sitting together was one thing but for some reason sleeping next to this man clad as they were was intimidating, and she was slightly off set by the idea. It was not a bad sensation rather she was nervous and if she admitted it to herself, a bit giddy.

"Ah." Sakura was right. Upon inspection there was only room for one really. His sleeping mat was quite bulky and would probably end up far too close to the fire than was healthy, especially with hers also set up.

"What do you want to do?"

Her question brought a choice. He could go with what he wanted to happen or the safe route. With the dilemma set before him the option was clear and though he did not like to think of it was worming his way closer to her, it was a apt description. He had seen time and again how men fared taking the direct approach initially. They always failed. Either by Sakura's own hand or via her overprotective entourage, they were all run off. He had another approach in mind and so far he was exactly where he wanted to be.

The night before could not have gone better if he'd had control of every single factor at camp. They had stayed in the same tent and had a lovely conversation about the uses of herbal teas as medication. They had slept in their own confines but he had woken before her and found she had sub-consciously rested against him in the night. He had struggled to keep the smile form his face for the rest of the morning, but in that instant where the Kumo-nin and Sakura had gone tumbling off the cliff his heart had skipped a beat. Before he knew what he had done he dove after her and thank kami he had. The kumo nin on her tail was out for blood. She could take care of herself but best not take the chance. He had knocked the nin out of the way before any damage could be done and spotted the broken jaw Sakura dealt out even when she was busy. They had worked well as a team, in sync the whole time and he was glad to find her relax when she made eye contact with him in the throws of the river.

He was quite good at reading people; his byakugan helped his a great deal in that department. In spite of the advantage, he had not needed it to see her reaction to him. Her ques were subtle yet apparent to one who was looking for them. He was thrilled to find that light pink dusting on her cheeks. It had become a new endeavor to make such a response happen more often and thus far he was succeeding. He did not think she realized it, but their close proximity had brought a flush to her cheeks and skin that was most becoming and he was hard pressed not to reach out and hold her.

It was a testament to his hard earned self control that he did not. She was beautiful and so much more petite than he recalled. He could have easily rested his chin on her head if they were standing and he had a feeling his long limbs could have entrapped her and kept her warm. He wanted to and yet...

He did not want to overstep his bounds. How many times had he seen a boy fly through the air? Admittedly, it was usually Naruto for having done something incredibly stupid or immature. Never the less it was a fate he wished to avoid at all costs less due to the pain, but more because he did not want to be written off. So for all that he was tempted, and he sorely was, he refrained from announcing what he wanted and went for the safe route.

"I can take first watch," he said moving to sit up. Just then a roll of thunder and a crack of lightening sounded in direct succession and Sakura froze. The electric current had landed very close, far too close for comfort. The sound of a tree limb cracking near by punctuated exactly how close. He only paused for a moment before continuing with his forward crawl.

"Neji-san," she called setting a hand on his bicep as he moved to exit the cave. He turned to find her eyes wide and a growing concern developing in the bright green depths. "If you sit outside all night you'll get sick."

She had a point, but he was less concerned about catching a cold than he was about keeping her mind at ease. The idea clearly made her worry and he could not have that. With a nod he settled down at the front of the cave just before the sheet of water that splashed at his knee. At the edge of the fire a chill prickled his skin and the night air was heavy with the storm. The wind had picked up significantly.

"That is hardly better than sitting outside..." She mused taking in the goosebumps on his skin. She had them too. The heat from the small fire was hardly comparable to having the tall Hyuuga sit next to her. With his removal she was now cold. "This is silly," she said in a slight huff. Before he understood what she meant by the comment the scroll was out again and her sleeping bag appeared on her lap. Hunched over she laid the soft green material out in the only space available. When that was completely laid out to her satisfaction she began to make hand signals.

He had forgotten. All those years back when they had met he recalled someone saying she as originally a genjutsu type. Kakashi perhaps at the chunnin exams... Whenever it was and whoever had said it, imagery was a skill set of hers that was rarely remarked on. Possibly because with a sharingan user on her team that particular proclivity was generally overlooked in light of the Uchiha's expertise, but he could not be sure. Whatever the reason she was confident now and that assured him greatly. The numerous hand symbols where complicated but she kept her eyes tightly shut the whole time.

She finished and let out a sigh opening her green eyes again. "I've put up a genjutsu. If someone does manage to find this place they'll be in for a rude awakening." There was a dark edge to her voice that he only heard occasionally. It made him wonder exactly what she had done but he would not want to find out for himself. With a self assured nod she turned to him. "Now we can both rest. I think my sleeping bag is big enough."

_Could it be that simple?_ he thought to himself. He had expected to sit outside in the cold the whole night, as he certainly was not going to let her brave the abominable weather for his sake. Low and behold she had come to the decision on her own and he was beginning to think his quest was blessed by the gods.

Then a thought occurred to him. Did she know what she was agreeing to? had she thought it through? surely she had. This was Sakura. she rarely did anything without at least going through the possibilities. Or perhaps she had not realized his intentions yet. If that was the case, it was best to be in the clear. "Are you sure?" he asked, catching her eyes with his keeping them trained on hers.

She blinked at him a few times before taking a good long look at her fluffy sleeping bag. There would be enough room, of that she was certain but, they would have to be close; very close. There were positives and negative to that, though for the life of her she couldn't think of what those negatives were. His question did slow her thought process down once again and suddenly she remember why she had that fluttery feeling in her stomach and chest earlier. His broad shoulders were bare and the grand majority of her back was bare as well. She almost shook her head at her own thoughts. This was a mission for Kami's sake! Of course she was fine with it; she had proposed the arrangement.

"Yeah." The assurance came out much softer than she had hoped it would and it betrayed her just a little bit. So it was not purely for the missions sake, but they were both tired and she felt far more at ease knowing they would both get some sleep than neither of them. If he stayed outside she would worry all night and that was not good for anyone. Then she saw it, a glint in those pearly eyes and she could feel the heat rise in her cheeks. It seemed that she was displaying her feelings in all sorts of ways. Her head shot down and she felt his hand on hers before she saw it.

The callouses on his palms brushed against her fingertips. He had taken off his shoes and placed them where he had been seated. The rock ceiling brushed the top of his head as he crouched down and she remembered how tall he really was. For a moment she worried that the top half of him might end up sticking out of the sleeping bag, but then her feet never did touch the end. It was only seconds later she realized he was waiting for her.

"Oh," she exclaimed removing her shoes and placing then next to his. The fire crackled and in the distance she heard another roll of thunder followed by the clang of lightning. Carefully she lowered herself down into the plush bedding. When she was resting he carefully and slowly joined her. It was a tight squeeze until he turned himself sideways. There a a bit of room but it was still snug and the material pulled tight against her skin.

"Um..." she began but quickly stopped short as he seemed to anticipate what she was about to say. She could feel the rough callouses of his hand sweep the planes of her stomach and suddenly the sleeping bag loosened its choke hold on her.

"Are you comfortable?" he asked, enjoying the feel of her pressed against him. Instinctively she relaxed, a fact that brought pride to his countenance. She turned her head to smile at him and nodded gently. Pink hair spilled onto the green cushioning as her head shifted back towards the cave opening, then closed her eyes to get some sleep.

"Good night Neji-san," she whispered in the flickers of the fire light before she drifted off, and for a moment he was truly surprised. She was comfortable enough with him to fall asleep so quickly and she trusted him enough to sleep next to him relatively bare. That word echoed in his mind; trust. She trusted him and he wouldn't be loosing that trust. Her scent filled the small cave, and this close to her the apple scented shampoo she used was distinct. The tiny little woman he held in his arms could knock down a mountain with a single blow of her fist and yet she was letting him hold her with no objection or passivity. She had not squirmed away, instead she had actually leaned into him as she fell asleep allowing him to keep her flush against his body.

She let out a long sigh in her sleep and rolled to turn her face towards him and he smiled down at her. His hand was now nestled firmly on her back and her face was snuggled rested near his. Long lashes dusted her cheeks and he could feel the soft rise and fall of her chest against him.

He pulled her in close, careful not to disturb her. "Good night Sakura."'

* * *

Neji's eyes snapped opened at the sound of shuffling in their small dwelling but then relaxed when a pink of head hair turned his way. At some point in the night, much to his surprise, he had actually fallen in to a very deep sleep. He had expected to watch over her all night but he was too comfortable and her presence too soothing. She had said they were safe and he trusted her judgement. Subsequently his eyes had closed. In spite of the rocky terrain it was arguably one of the best nights sleep he'd had in a long while. He sat up and twisted allowing a satisfying crack to resound from his back.

Sakura sat next to him having sat up to pull on her shirt and prep for the day ahead. "Morning, Neji-san. We should get going soon." Sakura handed him a mug of steaming tea, which he sipped at gratefully. He was beginning to expect these little gestures from her and it was nice to have a comfort form home on the mission, never mind the fact that because she was the one who made it he appreciated it even more.

"Head towards Konoha?" he asked, as he climbed out of the sleeping bag up to roll it up and hand it to her.

She nodded pleased with how quickly he picked up on her plan. As it happened it was what he would have done as well. "On the left bank. Kaka-sensei should be in the area. We'll head that way about half a mile out from the river bank."

He pulled his now dry shirt over his head. "Until we reach our point of separation." He watched her pack everything away, one piece at a time. All that as left was the little porcelain mugs that had their half finished tea.

She finished her beverage and waited for him to finish his as well before storing them away and rolling the scroll back up. "And from there if we don't meet up with them we head straight back to Konoha." Sakura tucked the storage scroll into her pouch. The little compartment was completely packed and also fully organized. She knew where everything was and with the additional sealed compartment there was no wriggle room.

"Your charge?" he asked with a smirk.

She grinned and clipped her skirt back into place before pulling on her shoes, and action he followed. "I'd like to see him try and outrun Naruto." Sakura took a deep breath and stepped out onto the bank. She stretched her arms waiting for him.

"Hn."

They both stretched their limbs whilst taking in the environment. It was a steep climb up the face of the cliff but relatively simple for them. The ground was wet and giving of the humid after affect of rain. There was a thick fog in the air but that would most likely clear up as the day continued. "What do you think?" she asked, wanting to take his opinion into consideration before they weaved through the forest. No one knew his limits better than him.

"I'll keep an eye on our surroundings. You can cover my blind spot in the trees."

She was a bit surprised to hear that from him. He rarely spoke about his weakness. In such an environment it was not as much of a problem. The trees often covered his blind spot and the change in trajectory from branch to branch allowed him to see more. Still he had asked and she was not going to question it. A small part of her was pleased that he would trust her with such a task and speak of his vulnerabilities openly with her.

With a small smile she cracked her neck and sent a glance to the top of the cliff. "Ready? I think we've got a ways to go."

His smirk was playful as he walked up to her. Their shoulders brushed as he moved to stand before her. With a glance over his shoulder, they shot up running along the cliff side and then into the trees, her following his shadow in the early morning.

The trees were still damp from the night before as were the leaves. To avoid being heard they did their best to dodge the foliage and stick to the thicker branches further down. Moving lightly through the forest Neji kept his eye out for any threats in the area. The fog had settled near the ground and refused to dissipate, and so they kept to the treeline where only wisps of the grey dared to venture. The clouds had not moved from the skyline but at least there was no rain and the light grey atmosphere in Oto was dismal.

They traveled in a comfortable silence well into the morning moving in sync with each other as the went. The landscape had not changed much but as they got closer to the land of fire the trees got bigger and were more densely placed together.

Ahead he spotted a team of Kumo-nins searching the area, presumably looking for them. They were traveling on the ground searching for signs of a camp, which worked out well for the pair. The enemy was headed straight for them and either way they would be noticed at some point. Better for it to be on their terms.

"Four kumo nins ahead." He lifted his hand to show the direction and she nodded assessing the situation.

"Hmm," she hummed taking his information into account. After a couple of seconds she turned to him and waited expectantly for his opinion.

"They will spot us anyway," he said with what she would only imagine was his version of a shrug. Though he did not seem to mind one way or the other he was already preparing for the confrontation. His eyes were focusing on their targets and the veins on his temples throbbed with chakra.

She too pulled her combat gloves back into place and tucked her hair behind her ears. "And I don't want that on my tail all the way home."

Silently they came to a decision. The pair crept through the trees making no noise waiting for the troupe to get close enough for an attack. The Kumo-nins were in a cross formation scouring the area for any hints, which left a few options for them. With a devilish grin, Sakura slunk off to cause mischief.

A tree collapsed into the nins path and soon after the earth behind them shook sending them all off their footing. In a scramble they climbed back into formation searching for the threat, but by then Sakura had diminished her signature and was hiding against the wind.

They moved away from the tree heading directly under Neji's branch. They were so occupied with trying to find Sakura they did not notice the Hyuuga dropping down to the center of their group covered by the thick soup of fog. His palm technique took care of the two men in front, they had only just turned in time to see the tips of his fingers closing off their chakra points. Both flew back in shock, their systems rebelling against them. He turned to help with the other two and found that unnecessary. A green chakra laden hand glowed in the dim shadow of the forest where two nins had engaged her in battle and found themselves on the loosing end. One of the two was male with brown hair but his other features were indiscernible. His face was bruised to the point of being unrecognizable. The woman had been next. After a few quick exchanges between the pair that he vaguely caught earlier, Sakura was almost caught off guard by a venom coated kunai or so the other kunoichi thought. Before she had a chance to turn and re-engage the enemy Sakura had sliced through her Achilles tendons and severed a nerve in her spine. It was a clean break that could be mended by a competent medic and some down time at the hospital. The man did not appear to be getting up any time soon. The woman moved to shout out at her attacker but was promptly knocked out by Neji.

"All in one piece?" Sakura teased cracking her knuckles. She waited for him to walk over, which did not take long. His lengthy strides had him standing at her side quicker than she expected.

"Hn," he said with a smirk but it faded quickly. Something about the encounter bothered him. What were so many Kumo nins doing this far into Oto territory?

"We should get moving." Her demeanor changed slightly as well. She appeared to be worried about exactly what he was worried about, busy scanning the area just behind him and taking their enemy's details in. "I had a look at the scroll before you woke up; its Kumo's. There will be more of them coming. And Oto won't be far behind."

She was right. The land of sound would be crawling with both set of nins not to mention team Kakashi and team Gai. The longer they stayed out here the higher the chances were that they would run into more nins. He highly doubted either hidden village knew that Konoha had sent out the new sanins, konoha's green beasts, the hyuuga prodigy and the infamous copy nin into their midst and so the other nins would not be as wary as they should have been.

"We should get to the border," he said, though he had no doubt the scroll would be safely returned to Konoha. It would not do to have the neighboring countries aware of their presence. With the sanins out to play anyone looking to make a name for themselves would be wanting to pick a fight and it would take ages to get home.

She nodded sharply to show that she was thinking the same thing. Of her team the only one wanting to start trouble was Sasuke and he was not there to drag her into it. No need to show off when they were meant to be on a quick retrieval mission. "And back to Konoha as soon as possible. The others will catch up."

With her confirmation they abandoned the original plan and changed trajectory in favor of plan b. As fast as they could manage, they darted through the trees headed straight for Konoha. Side by side now, they were blurs in the canopy.

* * *

Kakashi huffed lightly taking an account of the team. They were tired. Well, he was and from what he could tell so was Tenten. Not for the first time wondered how he'd managed to surround himself with such energetic people. His pupils and the green beasts were ready for more. Sasuke was always itching for a fight to let out some of his frustration and Naruto just wanted to go home. Either way they were ready for another encounter with the enemy and all Kakashi wanted to do was curl up in his arm chair at home and read. S_oon enough_, he promised himself.

Trekking through the mud after Sakura was his number one priority at the moment. So far there had been no sign of her but plenty of others had crossed their path. Two teams, one Oto and the other Kumo, had been put down already. Perhaps waiting had been a mistake this morning. He had hoped that Sakura would have found them before they headed out, but something must have happened. She had not shown up and by the time he realized it she was probably already heading home. He felt a faint quake in the west and knew it to be true. She was ahead of them, most likely trying to outrun whatever was on their tails.

He shook his head. That pair were too clever for their own good. Of course he'd had a feeling that was what she would do, but now he was sure and pleased. Silently he urged her on and wondered why in Kami's name had such a highly trained group of nins been sent for such child's play? The nins that came after them, save the first batch, were hardly the stuff legends were made of. Had Lee been able to hold onto that damned scroll they would have been home the night before. He let out a sigh. No sense crying over spilled milk. If Lee had been able to help it he would have.

A shout broke through his inspection of the enemy. "Yosh, Kakashi, we must catch up to your student!" And with that he could not agree more.

* * *

He would have expected to stop by now. If anyone else had been with them they would have. Midday had found them sailing across the border into the Land of Fire but neither was going to assume that meant they were in the clear. They were on the look out constantly. She insisted he take a break from his byakugan earlier in the day, not wanting to strain it too much. It had been a tense few miles to say the least but he trusted her and he had needed the break.

Nothing had happened and well within time to spot some traps his byakugan was back on top form. Once out of range she set the spring off and an explosion fired. The rest of the team were on the look out for them and no doubt now were trailing behind them. It would not do to leave a trap un-sprung, just in case Naruto was feeling particularity clumsy. There was little fear of that these days, yet still she looked out for him even if he did not need it, rather like the way Kakashi still doted after Sakura even though she was more than capable of taking care of herself.

It was nice actually, the way team 7 seemed to be so set on looking out for each other even after all that had passed between them, or possibly because of that. teams were always close but there was something there, almost like sibling that brought them even closer together.

Whatever it was it was enviable. Never the less this mission was hardly testing their skills. He wondered if Kakashi, who up until the separation had been watching Neji carefully, had picked up on it yet. They hardly needed both teams. No average jonin team in their right mind would go after team 7 knowingly. Tsunade was sending team 7 on smaller missions to get Sasuke back in the swing of things. Still they needed no help. Even if by some miracle Sasuke managed to escape all three, which he doubted the sullen Uchiha actually wanted to do, Naruto would haunt him the rest of his days.

The new sanins rarely worked with another team and ANBU missions were hardly the place to set in motion what he had planned. Thus he had taken his opportunity when it came by. A volunteer team to assist team 7 had been requested and without consulting his team he had signed them up. Tenten was the only one that objected. In the end she had no choice and the money was good so her complaints quickly faded away.

And now here he was, exactly where he wanted to be. Well, almost where he wanted to be. He had known he liked her the minute they'd bumped into each other again after a few busy years of quick hellos and goodbyes. She was sparring with Tenten and he was finishing up some training with Lee. She had laughed and smiled, discussing work with Tenten, while he listened in and watched. He was struck by how much she had changed over the years. She was more confident than she had been the last time he had seen her. In that moment something changed and he spent as much time around her as he could manage, which admittedly was not much. She was always busy with work whether it was ANBU or helping at the hospital.

And Kakashi and Naruto were rarely far away. They made it particularly difficult to speak with her as both were rather overprotective. Hyuuga Neji was not one to give up once he set his sights on something. He had been determined to be as near to her as he could manage this mission and he had been successful. He had also answered a few questions he had about her and their compatibility, both as a team and as a pair. Now a part of him was wishing he had acted on some of the temptations he had felt the night before. The other part, the larger part, was glad he waited. He wanted it to be on her terms as well as his.

So they pressed on. At this pace they would be home by night fall. Ahead he spotted a man with a large contraption strapped to his back. "Oto-nin at our 3." Designed for an ambush with the way he was set up. Unfortunately for him they had seen him coming long before he saw them. "He has a machine."

"I'll bait him, you knock him out," she proposed, waiting for the confirmation. Admittedly he was not fond of such a technique namely because it put her in harms way, but it was the best option and also the one that would save them the most time.

With his nod of approval they went their separate ways, Sakura heading straight into the line of fire. Neji did not think this man was a sensory type but best not to tempt fate. He did his best to sneak up behind him with out being noticed, which became significantly easier when the sight of pink hair floated in the behemoths vision.A buzzing noise filled the forest and sent animals scattering. High pitched and extremely shrill the sound was agitating.

A dark chuckle escaped the heavily muscled man who aimed the holes that donned the machine in Sakura's direction. A blast of concentrated air propelled itself through the forest breaking tree limbs as it went. He had fired off a few more by the time Neji approached his back. Lines cut through the forest where trees had been and he could clearly see Sakura in what was now best described as a clearing.

He wasted no time. He raced forward to pulse a wave of energy into the mans back only to find that the metal extended under his tunic. Surprised the nin turned around momentarily forgetting the medic before him. Neji grabbed a hold of his neck before he could turn completely. Unfortunately the mans neck was too thick to tighten his arms as he normally would have and a struggled ensued. Sakura rushed forward to help or at least take away some of the attention. Neji winced as an elbow hit his ribs. The sound waves kept going and Sakura dodged them as best she could whilst getting closer to the target. Neji sent a pulse of energy through the hand on the mans neck and shocked his system with an over flow of chakra but not in time to stop one last cannon from going off. The man went limp but neither stopped to check for a pulse, the heavy falls of his chest were indication enough that he was still living. And that was when he noticed it. She had been grazed by one of the cannons, the last one that had fired before the Oto-nin was knocked out.

The angry patch of skin screamed out at him from her pale skin. She followed his gaze and then smiled with assurance pouring fourth. "Just a scratch," she said with a shrug. It did not look like just a scratch but when he tried to get a better look the welt was gone.

"Sakura."

"Trust me, I've had worse. Nothing to worry about." She waved him off only to find large hands grasping her shoulders. She craned her neck to view the mans face that was currently examining her for any more scratches and then she saw it. Concern and worry. It was sweet really. It had been a long time since anyone other than Kakashi and Naruto worried about her safety in battle. This worry was different. A battle raged deep in those orbs. He was struggling with himself, not sure whether to lecture her or do something else entirely.

She did not know what to say or how to put him at ease but they were close, almost nose to nose. A calloused hand reached up to rest against her cheek. He was in her space and she could smell his scent so strongly now, sandalwood and soap. His was a breath from her, his tall frame bent to reach her.

A noise in the canopy pulled them apart and suddenly she remembered where they were. She had the feeling he had forgotten as well. Oddly he did not seem angry, as she caught his side long glance in her direction. There was regret certainly but she was not sure what it was aimed at. She stared at her feet for all of a second before she felt him push a few strands of pink hair behind her ears. She was not his regret. She could see it in his eyes now and he let a small smile lift the corners of his lips. She sent him a small smile in return. More noise from the branches had them both turning in that direction. If it was the enemy he would have said. With a little nod of her head they took off into the trees heading towards the city.

A border patrol had spotted them and waved them along. The ruckus made would have alerted a few border guards to their presence. The team would clean up the mess and so they continued towards home side by side, the faint outline of Konoha in the distance.

* * *

Kakashi was the first through the gate upon arrival, pushing through the others and bolting up to the Hokage's office. Inside the building was the chakra signature he had been hoping to see... and of course the boy's too. Calmly he walked through the double doors and up to the office with his hands stuffed into his pockets.

"Yo Sakura," he was greeted by a small wave and a pointed glare from their Hokage.

The busty woman's face twisted in a displeased sneer. "Well, thank you for showing up. You will be pleased to know that these two brought the scroll in an hour ago and have been waiting for you to arrive." she said, folding her hands in front of her and leaning back in her chair.

Kakashi ignored what was obviously an attempt to make him feel guilty and instead proudly ruffled Sakura's hair has he had when she was still young, a habit he had not quite been able to let go of. "Good work, Sakura."

At the open sign of affection Tsunade relaxed slightly before rummaging around for her seal. "She has briefed me on their portion of the mission and I expect to be updated on yours but not tonight. You are dismissed." Tsunade said, looking at the young pair before placing her seal on their report. Sakura saluted and turned on her heel to leave. Kakashi went to follow his student out of the room when a terse word chilled him to the bone. "Stay."

Neji held the door open for the pink haired beauty to exit through and it took everything in Kakashi not to follow after. Red nails tapped on the wooden desk for a time before coming to an abrupt halt. "I don't want to know how you got separated from her, nor how you managed to get back after her and I'm not sure I want to." He felt the lecture coming before it began and braced himself for the impact, but was surprised to find a somewhat amused kage seated before him. "She is a good girl and she is all grown up. has been for a while. It's about time you showed how much you really trust her, don't you think?" The bemused and rhetorical question was quickly followed by a souring of her expression. She let her displeasure settle in the office and he resisted the urge to squirm under her gaze. with a sigh she opened her sake drawer, shooing him out the door. "Now get out of my office."

He wasted no time and was surprised to find that the hallway was empty. A woman's voice drifted through the window. From there he could see Sakura and Neji headed into the town. They were close.. too close.

"Trust, Kakashi!" The bellow invoked fear on the basest of levels and he found that he automatically tensed. That aggravated him more than he could say, but he had to admit she had a point. Perhaps he could let them handle this without his watchful presence. And the book in his pocket was just begging to be read. With that in mind he headed home for some peace and quiet away from the threatening presence of his fearless leader.

* * *

The double doors shut behind them and Sakura took a deep breath. The night air was crisp. Autumn was just around the corner. She felt the brush of finger tips against her elbow and was surprised to find Neji was still at her side.

His eyes were set out straight before him and for the first time since she had meet him he was exuding something other than confidence. His shoulders were set and his head held high as they usually were but his tall frame was lacking some of the usual steadiness she was accustomed to from him. If she didn't know better she would say he seemed nervous, but what could he be nervous about?

"I-" whatever it was he did not get a chance to say, because Sasuke appeared before her in a plume of smoke with his hand held out. He shoved his wrist under her nose and waited. With a sniff she quickly removed the chakra and placed her hand on her hips in displeasure.

Without a word he walked off towards the Uchiha compound. "Well of all the nerve..." she said, shaking her head. "Ignore him. He's just being petty. You were saying?" she asked, looking up to opal orbs that glowed in the fading day.

She waited, not quite sure what to expect, but after their close encounter in the forest she was not sure exactly what to think. She thought he liked her, but he had pulled away and had not said much since. Of course she understood that they had been on a mission but part of her was disappointed anyway. Her whole body had buzzed finding him that close to her and ever since it was all she had been able to think about.

His hand, which had been at her elbow, remained there but now he had come around to stand in front of her. "I.." she watched as he struggled with what to say, or at least it seemed like that was what was happening. Patiently she waited and watched as he eyes scanned her face looking for something. He must have found it because finally the words came out . "With your consent, I would like to formally invite you to go for a refreshment now that our work has finished."

She blinked at him a couple of times and then tried her best not to laugh, but the twist of her lips gave her away. She swallowed it as much as possible and smiled up at him. "You could have just asked me out," she said, setting him at ease with the teasing in her voice. she was playful and accepting of him stepping closer to her.

"And how would one do that?" he asked keeping his eyes trained on hers.

Her chin tilted up in thought. "You sort of did, but there is no need to be so formal with me," she said honestly, that pink tinge back and a coy smile gracing her features. This time he did not want to contain himself. He had been holding back for days and finally they were both free of mission protocols. More importantly she was coaxing him in, her hand had raised to his arm and she didn't push him away. Instead she rose up onto her toes to meet him half way.

"I will keep that in mind," he said, a hairs breath from her before gently pressing his lips to her. She melted into his frame and he held her in close following the first chaste kiss with a more intense one. Just as he suspected it made her knees go weak and left him wanting more. His hands slid up to cradle her face as she held into his upper arms and shoulders for support. His lips slid against hers sensually and she returned his sentiment with fervor. Soon they were both breathless and needed to pull away but they did not go far. With the widest smile he had ever seen from her she reached up to lightly kiss his lips, brushing her nose with his in the process.

His finger tips caressed the line of her jaw just near her ear before letting his hand fall near hers. "Where would you like to go?" He took the first step away from the building with her falling in step next to him.

She was quiet for a few seconds and then she seemed to have made up her mind as her face turned to look up at him. "The cafe on First and Hana street?" she suggested with bit of excitement mingled in. He greatly suspected that the quaint cafe was one of her favorites, for as he thought back he had seen her there a few times in the past.

He took her hand and guided her forward, well aware they were being watched. Kakashi was not terribly subtle, nor was the shout that came from the Hokage's office shortly after. He heard Sakura's chuckle from his side and glanced down to see a twinkle in her eye.

"I hope he doesn't take to chaperoning us on all our dates. I'll have to tell him off then." The grin that spread across his face was unparalleled in his history of existence. Dates. Oh yes, he certainly liked the sound of that...

* * *

End comments: well, that was longer than i expected it to be. there will be one last chapter to this and i think i know whats going to happen but I haven't started it quite yet. inspiration in other places... never the less i will get the final chapter out ASAP. thanks for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: So this is the final installment of Honorable intentions. Never fear I have another story about to be posted and another shortly after that. This chapter is mostly in Kakashi's POV so please forgive any hiccups you may find in the outset.

* * *

_I'm too old for this shit..._ he thought to himself. He had been in a funk for days. Too many missions back to back. He needed a break. The last few missions had not even been with his normal team. Most recently the hokage had sent him off with Tenzo, Sai and Kiba on some random border patrol for the better part of three months. He had not been on border patrol in years.

If he did not known better he might have suspected that their fearsome leader was trying to get him out of the way. As it stood, he had been out for the way for months. His back still ached from all those nights sleeping on the forest floor. He really needed to invest in a good sleeping bag.

The border patrol was one of those assignments that most nins loathed, especially in this time of year. Late winter and early spring meant the ground was solid and you could not sleep or the rains had turned forest land into a veritable swamp. Slugging through the mud or cold was not his idea of a worth while mission. He knew no mission was too small and that if Tsunade choose to send him on D ranked missions for a whole year he would have to deal with that, but there were others who were happy to spend a few weeks a midst the natural wonders that abounded in the land of fire. It just so happened he was not one of them right now. In her defense, there was little going on in the ninja world as of late. Outside missions were dragging in peace times, not that he was complaining. Thus he accepted the fact that more than a few nins accustomed to higher ranking missions were working dull shifts that they were severely overqualified for. The only thing that could have been worse was being stuck in the records room sorting out discrepancies, which he knew had happened to Genma already. Just the thought made him want to shiver. He would take border patrol over library duties any day.

If he had expected the chill in the air to subside once he returned to the village he was sorely disappointed. Konoha had been graced with one last freak snow storm before the spring showers. Snow banks greeted his vision as his team walked through gates earlier that week and it had not dissipated yet.

He had spent his first few days on leave reading and training. After that had gotten old, he had gone in search of his three favorite rascals only to find them missing in action. Well, not exactly. They were in town somewhere he just had not been able to get them all in the same place at the same time. Naruto was training like a maniac when he was not at Ichirakus or in bed and Sasuke had disappeared into the confines of the Uchiha compound. None of that was out of the ordinary. Kakashi was quite accustomed to Sasuke's hermit tenancies and Naruto's flare for over working himself.

What he was not used to was Sakura falling off the face of the planet. He had checked the hospital and she had been there but was extremely busy. Every time he went to see her she was elbow deep in some injury that demanded her full attention. Typically after so much time apart she would find him and drag him out for a team lunch or some such, but this time she had not done that. She had left the boys to themselves and he did not find that to be comforting.

Sakura liked having them all get together for what she called 'team bonding' and he had expected to be hauled out of his comfy reading chair long before he was ready. All three men whined about it, but secretly they liked it when the cherry blossom dragged them away from their activities to spend time together.

Of course with Naruto as one of thier party, Ichirakus was where they always found themselves. In Kakashi's quest he had checked and as usual found Naruto scarfing down lunch there almost every day, but Sakura was nowhere to be found. Other members of the rookie nine (he had no idea why they were still called that. They were hardly rookies anymore) had joined him, but Sakura and Sasuke had not been among them.

Thus he found himself trudging through the frostbitten morning to get to her apartment and find out where the hell she had been. He had dragged Sasuke and Naruto out of bed under the pretense of a training session, though neither found that to be terribly amusing. When he had informed them of it the day before both had nodded and ignored him and so he found them in their separate dwellings in their pajamas. It was a fight to get them out, but both now trailed behind him still in their sleepwear. Naruto was wearing his sleeping cap and holding his bear that looked as if it too had been dragged through the muddy forests of Konoha and had never been washed.

The icy ground crushed under their feet as the trio marched their way through the streets. Sakura's apartment was well placed for her but clear across town for everyone else. The hospital was just a couple blocks away and she could there in a moments notice if she was needed.

"She might not even be there," Naruto said whilst yawning, still a bit drowsy and desperate to go back to bed.

Kakashi brushed off the comment having been prepared for such complaints. "She has the day off today." He had been sure to check. She was cleared from the hospital roster for some well earned rest. She could enjoy that well earned rest working on some team building exercises and then feeling the chill on her back as the four of them sat in the quaint but busy stall that felt like a second home now.

Both boys groaned behind him. Yes it was early, he admitted it, but it was hardly the crack of dawn. Unless he was very much mistaken, the time was about mid morning and all three of them should have been up and about by now. With a half mooned eye pointed in their direction neither sannin wanted to risk the run back home. Thus all three ended up taking the precarious stairs of Sakura's apartment building to find that the snow in front of her door had been cleared away.

Kakashi sensed a presence inside. If she had left she was already back again. He quickly borrowed the spare key from under the welcome mat and opened the door. The smell of coffee and chocolate wafted through the small space as all three men stepped in. It looked like breakfast was being made or had been made. Kakashi wondered if there would be enough.

Sasuke put a hand on Kakashi's arm, bringing him to a dead halt and that was then he heard it. The shower was on. "Ah," he began, but paused as the water stopped falling and movement in the bathroom had each man turning around to face the door. Naruto's shoulders hunched as he prepared to hear the shout that came from Sakura and his shoulders hiked up even more as the door knob turned.

"Hn." That one sound snapped their heads around so fast Kakashi thought they might have injured themselves. Standing in the bathroom door, wearing naught but a towel was Hyuuga Neji. A thin dark brow rose as he inspected the three intruders with a critical eye. "If you are looking for Sakura she went out."

For a moment Kakashi was slack jawed and he was thankful in that instance for his mask as he greatly suspected he wore a similar look to the Uchiha standing next to him. A guppy fish was an accurate depiction if he was any judge.

Naruto hardly seemed phased and rubbed his squinting eyes with the back of his hand. "Ok... Hey Neji." He greeted moving to sit on the plush sofa. Neji grunted and walked into the bedroom.

"What are you doing here Hyuuga?" Sasuke asked making an attempt to sneer but failing drastically due to his shock. Before Neji could answer a chakra signature bolted up the steps and pushed into the door way, not expecting an intrusion. Bags pushed into the copy nins lower back.

"Neji, I got... what are all of you doing here? Is there a mission?" she asked squirming her way through the two men that had blocked her front door. Cherry locks had bits of snow in them and she placed her loaded shopping bags gently on the ground next to the table.

For a moment no one said anything and Sakura looked between Sasuke and Kakashi expecting an answer. When none was given a groggy Naruto responded through the pillow he was currently throttling. "Kakashi-sensei wants us to go train."

The petite woman relaxed considerably. She had begun to take her groceries out of the bags only to be stopped by the presence of the man behind her. "I was supposed to get these. I'll put them away and cook." There was an element of gentle scolding laced in his words along with affection and they got the impression Sakura might have absconded to the store while Neji was preoccupied. He kissed her cheek and took the bags away. "Coffee?" he asked from the kitchen, to which he received a "yes please" from Sakura and what sounded like a "hot chocolate" from Naruto.

Green eyes narrowed on her old friend. "Don't get comfortable," she warned, well aware it was already too late. With a huff she turned to her old sensei with an apologetic smile. "Sorry Kaka-sensei, maybe another day. I have plans." The young medic proceeded to walk over to the sofa and pick up the junchurikki, who grumbled at having been removed from the cushions.

She held the curled up man for Kakashi to take, pushing Naruto over until the copy nin had no choice but to accept the over-grown baby. She slipped out of her shoes and coat. "Plans?" Kakashi asked skeptically taking in the sweatpants and t-shirt Sakura had donned to go out in.

"Yes," she responded, taking a nibble of some bread that had been on the table earlier. She jumped a little when a coffee mug floated into her vision and then leaned back into the warmth of a man that was wearing far too little for Kakashi's taste. A low riding pair of pajama pants was hardly better than the towel.

"Plans." The Hyuuga man finished for her allowing her to enjoy her freshly made coffee. The familiar way the large hand rested on her petite waist was disconcerting and Kakashi was beginning to feel off balance. "She's promised to take the day off," Neji said, pushing some pink hair behind her ears earning a shining smile from behind the mug.

"Yep, I did. So today my plan is to do nothing. And he's holding me to it." She giggled gracing the stoic man in question with a beam that could have lit up a city block. One of her hands, now free from the mug, pulled the Hyuuga into a hug and Kakashi was getting the impression that 'nothing' was not quite what they had in mind.

With a cough he decided to let this go for now and come up with a game plan for later. "And tomorrow?" he asked hopefully. He had a few things he wanted to speak with her about, namely to do with the young man now sitting in a chair next to her looking far too comfortable in her home. It seemed a lot could change in a couple of months.

She glanced down at the man who was now sipping at his own coffee, who shrugged in response. Her hand was now rested in his upper arm interlaced with long loose black strands as she leaned into his weight. "I think we can make lunch."

Realizing that was as good an answer as he was going to get Kakashi promptly guided both the boys back out the door leaving Sakura to her company.

"Does this mean we can go back to sleep?" Naruto asked with a yawn after being duped on the ground outside the apartment.

Both prodigies shot exasperated looks to the still drowsy man shuffling behind them. "No."

* * *

He was not finding this amusing, not in the least, but Tsunade certainly did. He had run into her after leaving Sakura's apartment and the coy smile that had graced him was hardly entertaining. Her cackle when she saw his face was heard echoing above the city. Now he was positive she had kept him distracted on purpose.

Lunch with Sakura had not gone quite as he thought it start with he had been late, and not just his typical kind of late, but genuinely late to the point he had completely missed the morning training session. He chalked it up to being thrown off the day before. He had not expected to find Hyuuga Neji practically naked in Sakura's home or to find her so comfortable with it. Not to say that he was displeased, merely unaccustomed.

Never the less he found himself unusually distracted for the rest of the day and well into the night. He spent a great deal of time thinking it over and while there was certainly a part of him that was put off by the idea he was becoming more accepting of this new development. He stayed up a better part of the night trying to sort out what he thought about his little Sakura-chan seriously dating someone, and then he scolded himself once again for calling her 'his little Sakura-chan'. She was not a love struck twelve year old any more.

Moreover, he greatly suspected that Hyuuga Neji did not see it as dating. Hyuugas were very serious, Neji more so than most. If he was seeing Sakura it was because he had already made up his mind, especially if the two had been together since the mission to Oto. That greatly worked in the boys favor and Kakashi felt more at ease when that tidbit had come to mind. Entrenched in his thoughts he had forgotten to set an alarm and slept well into the morning and it was not until he had started his routine that he realized the time.

Then his neighbor had stopped him before he got the chance to exit politely and he had ended up changing out some light bulbs for her. He did not know why everyone seemed to believe that his excuses were made up... most of the time they were genuine no matter how bizarre they seemed. Although he did have to admit that the odd fib here and there had earned him a reputation.

By the time he had set out to find his team they would have already been finished and off to have lunch, which in a sense was a good thing because at least he wouldn't have to search the vast training grounds to find them. He knew exactly where they would be.

He approached the ramen stand in the hopes of seeing his three students lined up at the counter, and they were, but there was no seat for him to join them. Sai had been at the training session in addition to Tenzo who now took up all the extra seats at the stand. Naruto had taken his customary seat next to Sakura on the far end and Tenzo sat happily in the middle with the stoic Uchiha and the artist to his right.

Tenzo gave up his seat to his senpai, having finished his meal already, and wandered off to train by himself. He was greeted warmly by his team, for the most part, closing his eyes at the sounds of 'Kaka-sensei' and 'Kakashi-sensei' that had become so familiar.

If he had hoped for a peaceful lunch out with his team he had chosen the wrong day. Naruto was asking endless questions through his ramen, to the point that no one could really answer him, nor could he get a word in edgewise. Only Sakura managed to respond with quick single word answers dotted through out the string of questions. "When's the next mission? Do you think it will be a long one? We haven't gone anywhere in ages. But I don't really want to cause I want to plan a date. Where's a good place for a date? Someplace that girls like. Know any places Sakura-chan? I'm so excited! Do you think she's excited? Can I get another bowl please? With extra pork! Sakura-chan will you come shopping with me? I think I need a new shirt for dinner." And so on and so on. Eventually the medic waved her hands before her chest and stood. "Finish up Naruto. We're meeting Lee-san and Gai-san for a training session."

"What the hell for?" A surly Sasuke asked from his perch at the far end of the table. Naruto mumbled an answer but Sakura decided to speak for herself keeping her hands on her hips, silently scolding his petulance.

"I am trying to work on my endurance. Lee and Gai-sensei are the best for that," she said, before looking over at Naruto. "Are you coming with me or not?" she asked cheerfully handing some coins to Ayame for her meal. Sakura pulled her hood up and waved at Hinata as the heiress walked by.

"I'll catch up Sakura-chan. Just two more bowls," he said with a sheepish grin before diving into another pot. He waved at Hinata, who blushed deeply in response.

Sakura sighed with dual intent, both exasperated and entertained at the same time. With a wave she jogged over to Hinata who had stopped to wait for her by the road and together the pair headed over to the far end of the training grounds where Kakashi had little doubt an over enthusiastic pair of spandex clad nins were already training and waiting.

"She just wants to see her new boyfriend before she goes back to the hospital," Sasuke sneered cynically, taking delicate sips from his broth. It was not that Sasuke was trying to be mean, or maybe he was. Kakashi had noticed a growing animosity from the Uchiha towards the pretty pink haired woman. He mentally set that aside as something he needed to address. This time the jab was purely in Sasuke's normal vein, the attitude he took with both his teammates. Ignoring Sakura no longer worked as a technique in avoidance so he had taken to leaving biting comments in her wake rather like what he had always done with Naruto.

In her absence, Naruto objected with a mouthful of noodles, glaring at his old friend from across the bar. "He won't be there, Teme. Neji got called for a mission this morning. He won't be back for at least a week." Sasuke sniffed at being proven wrong but promptly was back to himself by the time Naruto's next bowl of ramen arrived.

Neji would be away for a time which would give Kakashi the chance to have a chat with Sakura and find out about this budding relationship that was clearly taking off. There was just one question he really needed to ask. After that he was sure he could relax and find a means of settling into this new routine. With that new thought in mind he got comfortable and ordered a bowl for himself. He rarely ate out but he had missed his breakfast and a growling stomach through a training session with Sasuke would not do.

If anything annoyed the moody brat he would just walk away and the last thing Kakashi wanted to deal with was his brooding student acting out, which he had been doing a fair bit recently. He thought it over between slurps. Perhaps now was the time to coerce Sai into training with them and also speak to the hokage about another mission to allow Sasuke to let off some real steam.

* * *

She was walking on cloud nine and down in the dumps all at the same time. She had not thought that previously possible but it turns out that such an experience was fully feasible. That giddy squirm in her stomach was akin to the twisting wretch she felt ever time she thought about how late he was.

The whole team was late, not just him but still it was a serious worry. He was never 3 days late returning and she was more than a little concerned. At the same time she was so excited to see him. This was the longest time they had been apart since they begun dating. He called it courting, which was cute in a pretentious sort of way.

He had gone out of his way to see her at some point everyday even if it was just in passing, which was impressive and on days when he was out on missions he would catch her first thing the next day. She found it odd that since that mission in Oto he had been free more often than usual and on top of that none of the missions he had been sent on were very far away. She had been recalled from field work for a short time to man the hospital, which was understaffed, but even after that she had hardly been sent out at all. ANBU had next to nothing to do and every member she passed was itching to get an assignment. Even the jounins were chomping at the bit to get some kind of task. Subsequently they got to spend a great deal of time together, more than would be typical, and now she could hardly imagine life without him.

She had not expected things to move as quickly as they did but she was hardly complaining. About a month before he spent his first night at her apartment and neither had really looked back since. Of curse he still had his quarters in the Hyuuga compound but he was rarely there anymore. They had taken the physical side of their relationship slow, moving one steady step at a time but that had eventually culminated in a heated night two months ago at her apartment and they had fallen into a blissful pattern. In retrospect they had moved slower than she thought. The mission in Oto had been almost six months before.

Six months... had it really been that long already? The private smile she exhibited was absolutely glowing and she paused for a moment to just enjoy it. Things in her life were going so well and now all she needed to do was march down the gate and see if he had gotten home yet. She figured he had not because if he had he would have gone straight to the apartment and would be standing before her. Once that was accomplished and she knew he was home the worry would be erased, for now, and she could go back to bliss.

She stepped out of her door only to have the sudden arrival of a green flak jacket invade her vision. She had been expecting this. A familiar presence stood in her path and the well worn black material of his mask was damp in the early hours. "Morning Kaka-sensei."

She was not sure what the deal was but lately he had been popping up in the weirdest places. Unfortunately because of that, he only ever saw her when she was busy. She had seen him most recently as she was dashing between emergencies at the hospital. Consequently she sent him a quick wave and a smile and was off again. It had been happening like that for the better part of the week.

She had wanted to tell him to just spit it out while she was running between checkups and operations. It was amazing what some nins got up to when they were inactive for too long. Boredom, it seemed, was a catalyst for nins to develop new techniques which often led to another nin being used as a guinea pig or just getting caught up in the cross fire. Either way the number of broken limbs and odd injuries was unusually high right now.

She could tell he had a purpose in seeing her, and that said purpose was important to him, but as of yet he had not said what it was. To be fair he hardly needed to. She knew what this was about. Naruto had time to get used to seeing Neji around and Sasuke hardly cared enough to be bothered. Her old sensei had been away for a time and it must have been a shock to him to come back and find her boyfriend showering at her place in the morning.

She had always kept a relatively open door policy for Naruto and Kakashi both of whom lived on their own and often failed to feed themselves properly. She intended to keep it that way... to an extent, of course. So far Naruto had managed to avoid any awkward encounters, thus Kakashi should be more than capable of avoiding them as well if he was so inclined.

She wanted to shake her head but held back. It was just something he was going to have to get more accustomed to. Obviously she would take his feelings into consideration; she was always considerate of her boys feelings. The other two had been established already. Naruto was thrilled and had been pretty much from the beginning. He was so excited that he had asked Hinata to go on a double date with them, which had become a relatively regular occurrence when all four were around. Sasuke had already made his clear. Instead of pouting as she had thought he might do, considering his scowl when leaving her apartment last, he had joined her and Naruto for a quick lunch a few days before. Much to her amazement he had exuded no snarky comments or attempted to rattle her cage in anyway. Instead, for the first time in ages, he sat peacefully next to her and upon leaving the establishment actually sent a grunt her way in parting.

Now all that stood before her and her goal of a happy, if not a bit makeshift, family was the man before her. She knew he meant well and she genuinely appreciated his efforts. She knew he liked Neji well enough, he just had questions, which was bound to happen. She was just glad he was approaching the subject with an open mind. She had thought he would be the first to rally round, followed closely by Sasuke, and tailing in last the ever stubborn Naruto. In the past it was usually Naruto that had warned people off, but she wondered now if actually Naruto had been the one yelling the loudest and she had missed the quieter but far more deadly threats of her sensei.

"Yo, Sakura-chan." As per usual he had his little book propped up before his nose. The cover was falling apart and she logged that observation away. His birthday would be coming up soon and he would appreciate a new copy. A dark blue scarf around his neck was the only change to his attire in the winter weather and she noted with pride that it was the one she knitted for him the year before. And it was dirty. Well, she supposed if the scarf was dirty then at least he was using it.

The scarecrow of a man turned to the side to let her out and waited as she locked her door. "Mind if I join you?" He must have found out about her new morning detour. It was early enough that the sun had not fully risen and every breath brought a cloud with it. Shizune had asked her to swap shifts the night before which meant Sakura had worked almost a full 24 hours and now had all day to herself. Normally she would have been thrilled at the prospect but for now she had one thing on her mind.

"Of course not," she said, starting to take the ice covered steps down to the street below.

It was not until they reached the street below where someone had kindly removed some of the snow and ice that he turned to her and lowered his book, which she greatly suspected he had not actually been reading. Far too many times she had caught those eyes of his focused just at the edge of the page instead of on it. After all those years under his tutelage and then on his team she knew this man better than most others did. She had gotten accustomed to taking the subtle hints that could only be seen through the mask if one knew what to look for. He was smiling at her as he did when he was attempting to broach a subject carefully.

"How have you been?" he inquired. Oh, yes, he was definitely wanting to know about Neji. Better now than latter. Hatake Kakashi had a rather inquisitive nature especially concerning his students. He liked to know what was going on.

She rubbed her hands together to keep them from getting cold before sticking them into her pockets. "I've been great Kaka-sensei. Wonderful really," she opened up to him smiling widely with a great deal of reassurance packed in.

He nodded and then got down to what he really wanted to talk about. "I suspect that has a lot to do with what happened the other day."

She laughed, bumping into him as they waked town the street side by side. "Well, not so much what happened but who was with me, yes," she admitted after regaining some of her composure. She had not really expected him to be so forthright but she liked it.

"And I have nothing to worry about?" he asked quietly sure that no one but her heard him.

Sakura reached out to wrap her sensei in a tight side hug as she looked up into his familiar face. "Nothing at all, I promise," she said touched by his concern. Every time she saw his care for her it always brought a well of emotions with it and the distinct urge to tear up. It was rare to see such displays from the copy nin and thus when she did she was sure to cherish it. She latched onto his arm as they continued walking to the gate.

Happy with her response and at ease with her assurance he pulled out his book again, actually reading it this time. "I was thinking about doing some training with my hounds later today. Pakkun will want to see you."

And she wanted to see him as well. She squeezed his arm gently, not wanting to hurt him. That was was always a concern even with her normal force exerted. "I bought him and the others some treats the other day. You should bring them by later tonight."

"Will you be free?"

"Hmm..." she had to think about it for a moment but soon enough she had it sorted out. "Stop by around five and unless the hospital needs me I will be free." She promised keeping an eye on the checking station that they were now rapidly approaching. Kotetsu, who had been working guard duty for the week, waved her forwards knowing the information she was after. Sakura bolted towards the gate and stopped short of the stand.

"Any sign?" she asked with a nervous edge on her voice and she began to frown as the man shook hes head. Slowly that shake turned into a teasing smile and Kakashi watched as Sakura's eyes brightened. He could not remember a time that she looked so genuinely happy and that in turn made him smile.

She turned to the gate hopefully and began to ramble occasionally looking back at Kotestu. "You heard from them! When are they getting in? You know I'm going to get you back for that right?" The last part was said with so much joy that it took both men a moment to realize that she was threatening and when they did Kakashi sent a very frightened Kotetsu a sympathetic shrug.

She looked back to see if he had understood when a quartet of rapidly moving chakra signatures raced from the woods and into the gate. Their speed picked up the snow around the gates and flurries filled the air as team Gai returned. Sakura was swept up in a tight hold that brought forth a squeal of excitement he had not heard in years. When the whirls of snow cleared he got a glimpse of the Hyuuga in close quarters with his student.

Kakashi turned to give them some privacy as the pair were face to face exchanging murmers of affection. The interaction was sweet, he had to admit. With time he imagined that he would get used to seeing such things from them. Gai clapped him on the back in greeting. "Isn't it wonderful? Such a strong pair. Youth!"

The loud boisterous laugh broke through the couples moment but neither moved away. Neji turned to his team only to be waved off by Tenten. "You two go. I'll make sure the report gets turned in."

With a big smile Sakura thanked the weapons mistress and then waved at her sensei. "Thanks Tenten! See you at five sensei!" she shouted heading towards town with Neji at her side.

Kakashi actually did shake his head this time sticking his hands in his pockets. It was nice to see her so happy. He had always hoped to see that spark come back and there it was, as though it had never left. There was some gratification in that. If the boy made her feel that way than Kakashi was all for it. In fact he would stop by that night, on time, as a show of good faith. Having come to a decision he jumped to a near by roof top. He would have to find something to occupy his time until five o'clock. Training was always a good time filler. If the ninken were going to get treats later they might as well work for it.

* * *

It was now five past five. He had waited an extra few minutes on purpose just to live up to his own reputation. And besides he had wanted to get a good feel for the environment before he walked in. Peaceful was the best word he could manage.

"Are we going to sit out here all night? My paws are cold," Pakkun complained from their perch across the street. The hounds sniffed and barked in comradery and Kakashi let out a sigh.

Now they had to go in. Neither Sakura nor Neji would have missed the howl that erupted from the pack courtesy of Akino. Kakashi sent a half-hearted glare to the ninken who were all getting anxious at the though of treats. He gave them the signal. In a flash step the whole pack waiting for Sakura when she opened the door to let them in.

"Hello boys, come on in! Wipe your paws please," she requested and suppressed a giggle when Bull very politely and delicately cleaned off his paws at the mat. " I made dinner. You hungry?" A chorus of yips was her answer as each ninken piled through the door after the next. When they were all inside Kakashi jumped over the meet his bemused host.

"I made dinner for you too," she said holding the door open as he removed his muddy shoes at the door.

Kakashi heard the commotion before he bothered to see what the fuss was about. He had a feeling he knew what it was about. The ninken had surrounded Neji, and were happily sniffing the calm man who did not seem put off by the intrusion.

"I warned him that might happen," she explained quietly, following him in. Little bowls had been set out for the hounds filled with some sort of meat mix that he knew he would be hearing about for some time. Sakura was their favorite and she always managed to out do him when it came to food and treats. The pack had yet to let him live it down.

Pakkun, who had been inspecting from a short distance pranced up to the Hyuuga and extended a dainty paw. "We've meet before briefly. Hyuuga Neji, yes?" The small dog was pleased to find a firm but gentle hand meet his paw in a shake. "You take good care of our Sakura-chan." The little pup insisted. Neji responded with a grunt and once Pakkun was satisfied he allowed the man to give him a small scratch behind the ear.

"Ok boys, time for food." Sakura called, reminding the ninken what awaited them. With the medic busy listening to compliments on her cooking and directing each dog to his bowl Kakashi was greeted by Neji.

"Kakashi-san." The boy, or rather man, was taller than him by a bit thus when the top of a brown head of hair presented itself Kakashi did not quite know what to say or do. Hyuuga manners were impeccable and Kakashi did not pretend to be on point with any of them. He was not considered to be the most polite person in public opinion but in light of the effort he would try his best.

"Neji-kun," he greeted in return, holding out a hand for the young Hyuuga to shake. Firm grips on both sides were well intended and Kakashi appreciated the confidence exuded by one so young. The anger he sensed in this man so many years ago was gone replaced by a calm reassurance that he had to admit seemed natural.

Neji released his hand and waited fro him to walk over to the table. "We are glad you could make it," he said, sitting down across the small seating to see the father figures face. It had always unnevered Kakashi to an extent that the Hyuugas could see what he looked like without him giving them permission, but he supposed it was unavoidable. In this case the Hyuuga male in question was doing his best to make Kakashi feel welcome in his presence.

The effort was reciprocated. "So am I," he said sincerely. A thought came to mind and Kakashi sat down at the table. The glint in his eye should have warned Neji; it very well may have but if he sensed anything devious Neji made no point of showing it. "Neji, how would you like to train with me sometime soon?" he asked quietly making sure Sakura paid as little attention to his plans as possible. The only one who had spotted his scheme was Pakkun. The little dog shook his ears and went back to his dinner.

Neji sat down next to Kakashi and looked him square in the eye and showed the extent of his determination. "I would be honored. Let me know when you are free."

"Good." There was that at least. Kakashi grinned behind his mask. He liked the Hyuuga from what he could see so far, but this was working out to be a win-win situation for him. Now he would get to bond with Sakuras new beaux and also potentially punch him in the face with complete justification, because as mush as he liked the stoic man he wanted to reserve the right to clock him if he ever wanted or needed to. Sparring would work wonders for both of them. Plus it was a testament to how far this man was willing to go for their Sakura-chan.

The pink haired woman had finally turned her attention to the pair now quietly seated at her table when a fist began pounding on the door. "Sakura-chan," came a wail from the other side no sooner had a peaceful accord been reached. "Teme and I are hungry!" Sakura marched over to the door and swiftly opened it to find her best friends waiting on her porch.

The odd pair walked in pulling off shoes and coats as they went and Kakashi was hardly surprised to find that his male students had made more of a mess than the ninken. Naruto was hardly through the door when his calloused finger shot out in accusation. "You were having a party and didn't invite us?" His half hearted complaint earned him a swift smack on the back of the head which he nursed with a smile that was somewhere between sheepish and apologetic.

Sakura rolled her eyes as she moved into the kitchen to finish making dinner. "Stop moaning and grab a seat," she commanded, thinking about the best way to stretch her dinner plans to include two hearty eaters.

Kakashi looked around the table which was now completely full and found that Neji was fitting in better than he expected. Naruto was chatting happily while the other two listened, Neji more openly than Sasuke. Oddly enough the older man was finding Neji's company quite relaxing. He was not as touchy as Sasuke and a great deal more manageable than Naruto. All in all there were no complaints. He had been wary for sure, but whilst the Hyuuga was quiet he had a warmth towards Sakura that could hardly be matched. If Kakashi really thought about it they were a good match just as Gai suggested. Neji's quiet calculations off set Sakura's open observations well. Their strengths played well together and the weaknesses exuded by one seemed to be compensated for by the other.

He could sit back and enjoy this security for a time knowing that Sakura was in good hands while he got used to the idea that the team would have to share her. She was still their Sakura-chan but now she was all grown up, a fact he had been avoiding for a while. It would take time and while they moved slowly in their endeavors he could get used to the new boundaries. Besides it was not like she had met the Hyuugas formally or anything. This relationship was still in the early stages. He would have plenty of time to acclimate.

His musing paused when a plate was set before him. Sakura's meals were the best. Home cooked and full of flavor he always enjoyed having a seat at her table. The stew she had made for them was hearty and when no one was looking he would quickly dig in. Naruto had already started and was the subject of Sakura's current attentions.

"Naruto, I thought you were working on your manners?" she scolded smiling at the blonde who mumbled something through his food. "The kage summit is approaching and Tsunade-sama said you were going this year." A look of panic emerged on the face that was stuffed with food but then he relaxed when Sakura patted his hand reassuringly. "Don't worry, we can go to tea with Hiashi-sama for practice. He was very understanding when I met him the other week and I'm sure he can help."

Kakashi nodded his approval. Etiquette lesson from the well respected Hyuuga clan leader might be good for Naruto. Slowly the words she spoke dawned on him and now it was he that sported a looked of terror. W_ait... what?!_ Grey eyes shot over the the man seated next to him. A slight quirk of the lips told him all he needed to know. He had to give Neji credit. Once he knew what he wanted the man wasted no time. It seemed he would need to acclimate much quicker than he originally thought. And to think he had thought so little of this endeavor that day in the woods. _Intriguing indeed_. He knew that blush had meant trouble.

Kakashi wanted to laugh at his own expense. He had turned his back for all but a day and the prodigy had wasted no time taking advantage of the opportunity afforded him. Normally that might have bothered him, but not his time. Hyuuga Neji had managed to slip bast the Uzumaki, Uchiha and Hatake barrier that surrounded Sakura with the determination and skill of a man that deserved to be where he was. Plus unless he was much mistaken the two loved each other and Neji would protect Sakura with his life. Kakashi could hardly hold that against him. It was not just any man that could brave the potential barrage but also emerge unscathed and Kakashi had to give credit where credit was due. _Touche Hyuuga, touche._

* * *

End Comments: I may have struggled a little bit with the ending but I think it wraps this story up nicely. There was not as much action in this last one, I know, but it came naturally. I hope you all enjoyed this. I did and I have a few more in the wings. See you soon!


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